PATRIOTS: Newcomer Marsh aims to improve

Recently acquired in a deal with Seattle, defensive end Cassius Marsh vows to be better than he was in his debut with the team in last Thursday night's season-opening loss to Kansas City.

Glen Farley The Enterprise @GFarley_ent

FOXBORO – His performance was, in many ways, a microcosm of his team’s.

Which is to say, there’s a lot of room for improvement.

“I’ll be better,” defensive end Cassius Marsh, the Patriots’ recent trade acquisition from the Seattle Seahawks, vowed following his team’s 42-27 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in last Thursday night’s NFL regular-season opener at Gillette Stadium.

Marsh’s debut with the Patriots saw him finish with three tackles on the stat sheet, but he also unwittingly nailed down a starring role on the Chiefs’ highlight reel. He also nailed the Chiefs’ Dustin Colquitt to draw a running-into-the-punter penalty in the third quarter, but that’s another matter.

As for that spot on the Chiefs’ highlight reel, the 6-foot-4, 245-pound Marsh earned that appearance when he attempted to cover the speedy Kareem Hunt on a deep crossing pattern out of the backfield in the fourth quarter (a position he was put in when linebacker Dont’a Hightower left the game with a knee injury in the third quarter) with predictable results.

With Marsh in pursuit, the rookie running back turned a pass he caught in stride from quarterback Alex Smith into a 78-yard catch and run for the touchdown that gave the Chiefs a 28-27 lead.

“We just have to be better. I have to be better and I have faith in these guys and I have faith in myself,” said Marsh. “I know we will turn this around and do what it takes to be better and get Ws (wins) like the Pats always do.”

Acquired in a trade on the the league’s cutdown day that sent fifth- and seventh-round draft picks to the Seahawks, Marsh is new to the Patriots’ way but, by all accounts, anxious to learn.

Defensive coordinator Matt Patricia credited Marsh for dedicating himself to the crash course he was enrolled in after he was obtained from the Seahawks on Sept. 2.

“He worked extremely hard (last) week to try to make sure he understood everything,” said Patricia, “and just go out and play hard and do those things (asked of him).”

Just a few days after he arrived, Marsh was on the field for 24 defensive plays and 32 special teams plays (only Jordan Richards, with 33, logged more time on special teams).

While the sight of him in futile pursuit of Hunt was the eye catcher, Patriots head coach Bill Belichick said there were some positive aspects to Marsh’s debut with the team.

“I thought there was some positive things,” Belichick, who gave his team the weekend off, said Friday. “I would say a lot of things that we need to work on with everybody, but new players, as well. But, yeah, I thought there (were) some positive things.”

A fourth-round pick of Seattle’s out of UCLA in the 2014 draft, Marsh has been credited with 58 tackles, three sacks, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery on defense while also contributing on special teams in 38 NFL regular-season games (one start).

“I just have to be better,” Marsh said. “We all have to be better and I know that we will watch the film and work hard in practice every single day.

“I’m going to start getting myself better right now. I don’t accept that (loss to the Chiefs) for one second. I’m not OK with losing, ever. I’m not OK with being beat, I want to be great. This team wants to be great and I’ll be better.”